Friday, December 3.1999
The University Daily Kansan
Section A · Page 5
Hangin' tough: the life of a boy-band groupie
Continued from page 1A
"We really enjoy their music," Samantha said. "They put on a great show. And, they are adorable."
So when we found out they were performing in Wichita, we headed southwest without hesitation. It didn't matter that we didn't have tickets to the sold-out show.
Just as we were inquiring about buying scalped tickets, our hero saved the day.
We met 'N Sync's road manager who hooked us up with great seats. So we enjoyed another great show.
On the night before an Omaha, Neb., performance, we got up the courage to track down the 'N Sync road manager we met in Wichita. We called all of the hotels we could find. Finally, we tracked him down, and the front desk connected us to his room.
We weren't at all afraid to ask our guy for another favor. He said he could get us in and told us to be there a bit early because we were going to meet the guys.
We did get to meet them, but so did about 50 other people. But it was still our moment. It didn't matter that we had to share it with others.
We immediately discussed the day's events and documented them for posterity's sake.
'Nvolved
True, we had other area concerts to go to,
but they were months away. In the interim,
we looked for concerts nearby and drove miles away to attend.
After spending the summer break in different locations, we all met up in Kansas City, Mo., for an August concert. It was our starting point for our whirlwind tour with 'N Sync.
That's where we meet Concert Bob, the man who sells band paraphernalia. And when he invites us to help him work at the Dallas and Houston shows, we quickly agreed.
We were so obsessed that we stood in miserable heat passing out band information and hiked up and down steps at Texas Stadium selling binoculars, just because we might get better seats.
And we did—12th row.
"We just have a lot of fun doing all this." Samantha said. "It's nothing serious, but a lot of fun going and seeing them. The people I'm with make it fun."
We never missed an opportunity to make a connection with a boy-band insider. At the Nov. 18 Backstreet Boys concert, we didn't let
fear get in the way of making friends with one of the group's dancers, Amy, as we waited in the will-call list for tickets. We'll never know when Amy might be able to hook us up.
As fanatics, we have waited in heat and cold. We have gotten up early to wait in lines, and we have stayed up late waiting for tour buses to pull in. We have laughed at things the boys have worn and been embarrassed by things they've said. We've lost our voices screaming at concerts and lost our paychecks buying CDs. But most of all, my friends and I
have had a good time.
Sure, we are older than the typical boy-band fans, and sure, we get teased for our behavior. But it doesn't bother us. We like these guys and get a kick out of them.
"I just have fun with it," Maggie said. "Everybody who knows me knows that boy bands are something that I would like." But we are not alone.
"I know a lot of closet boy-band fans." Maggie said. "They just won't admit it."
Above: 'N Sync members Joey, Lance, Justin, Chris, and JC are the objects of desire for thousands of fans.
- Edited by Katie Hollar
Left, Amy, center,
a Backstreet
Boys dancer,
poses with
Samantha
Roberts, Salina
senior; Jamie
Knodel, Plate
City, Mo.; senior,
Maggie Erickson,
Coffeyville
junior; and
Wendy Wyman,
Houston senior.
The KU students
were at the
group's Nov. 18
concert.
Contributed
photos
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